An aspiring writer's journey into the process of learning how to write comics through the study of the works of established professionals

What is this?

Decrypting the Scripting is my attempt at learning the craft of comics writing through the study of established authors. Part notebook, part journal, it's the documented journey of my progress up in the career I'm building for myself as an independent comic creator. You're welcomed to share this journey with me.

- Yannick Morin

Monthly Archives for February 2012

Slim pickings this week as I didn’t get much from my pull list. Still, there are always interesting things to talk about when you sit down and really READ these things instead of blasting through them in ten minutes.

A short reminder before we go on though: let’s not forget that what I’m doing here is not reviewing these books. What I’m doing is searching through them for items of interest for someone learning the craft of writing comics. Thus, I might completely overlook major features of a particular issue to focus on something as insignificant as… well, you’re going to see below. In any way, the point is that although I might declare that “I’m disappointed” by something, it in no way implies I’m about to drop a book. The same way, “loving” something about a book doesn’t mean it gets a free pass to my longbox. Every comic has something to teach, whether by giving good or bad examples. My wallet decides what comes back home, but my heart determines what I keep locked away as a lesson.

I loved…

The dialogue spilling over into captions in Scott Snyder’s AMERICAN VAMPIRE #24 – I didn’t gush over Mr. Snyder’s BATMAN #6 last week – OK, well I did slip in a mention at the end. Anyway, this month’s issue of AMERICAN VAMPIRE give us a prime example of a transition device I love so very much. I’m talking about making your dialogue spill over into the following scene’s first caption.

It’s not a simple matter of just making the conversation go on past the point where the speaking characters are actually shown. To properly use this device, the writer has to make sure the dialogue spilling over gains a second meaning in the beginning scene while still remaining relevant in the context of the one that just ended. This makes for a nice seamless segue into a new portion of the plot.

An example?

Page 4 – Panel 5

Tight shot of TRAVIS straining to hang onto the front of the rolling car, seemingly on the verge of slipping under it.

SKINNER: You keep hanging on, kid…

Page 5 – Panel 1

Tight shot of TRAVIS lying on a stretcher and being electrocuted by DR. MALIK.

CAPTION: La Jolla Sanatorium. Six years ago.

CAPTION (SKINNER): “…hanging on to that dream.”

Here, the line “hanging on to that dream” refers not only to Skinner taunting the young Travis as he hangs on for dear life but it also takes on a second richer meaning when applied to the second scene where Dr. Malik is attempting to make Travis admit that the vampires are only a figment of his diseased psyche.

There are seven scene transitions in all and only one of them doesn’t use this device. In fact, the only time it’s not used is because the story segues into a magnificent spread that blends different flashbacks into a single striking image. It goes to show that even when you know how to use something to its full benefit, you also need to know how NOT to use it for a greater benefit still.

I liked…

The various sound effects in Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin gray’s ALL STAR WESTERN #6 – I’ll admit it: this is just candy. But candy is good. You need candy from time to time if you want to keep your reader interested – vividly interested.

There’s a battle occurring in the middle of this comic when the police corner a gang of slave drivers in the Gotham City sewers. Although this isn’t the first fight in the book (it opens with Jonah Hex fighting a giant bat – yeah, don’t ask), the writers decided to go all-out on the sound effects. What’s making me smile is that instead of resorting to the same run-of-the-mill BANG-BANGs, they insert a few that wouldn’t be out of place in the old cheesy Adam West Batman TV show.

Here’s the rundown as they occur in the three pages the fight lasts:

PWEENGBLAMBLAMCHOKKAPWEENGSOK (This accompanies a cop in a very gentlemanly stance, knocking out a thug, all Marquess of Queensbury-style. “Sok to you, sir!”)CHOKBLAMBANGBLAMBLAMCHOWKRAKCHOW

Now tell me you can’t smile when you read that KAPWEENG!

When I read it, this was the first thing I thought of:

Hehe. KAPWEENG!

I was disappointed by…

The event-driven plot of Angelo Tirotto’s NO PLACE LIKE HOME #1 – There’s something particularly disheartening about not finding yourself excited about a debuting indie title. There’s a part of me that wishes huge success to whatever little guy throws his story in the ring, trying to tell us another kind of tale than the ones we’re getting sold month after month. There is however another part of me that has to evaluate these new books using the same criteria as I would any established creator. Ultimately, to succeed in this market, you have to understand that the money used for buying your comic comes from the same pocket used to buy AVENGERS vs. X-MEN. There’s no special fund for the little guy.

That’s why it saddened me to finish reading this first issue and being left with a feeling of… shallowness. There was something missing and I just couldn’t quite put my finger on it. After my third reading, it finally struck me like a Kansas tornado: it’s an event-driven plot in a near-featureless setting. I’ll explain…

There are two types of plots in fiction: character-driven or event-driven. In character-driven plots, the story goes forward under the influence of the characters’ thoughts, emotions and actions. The plot goes where it goes because there are these specific people participating in the action. Shakespearean tragedies, Woody Allen movies and HBO dramas are all examples of character-driven plots. On the contrary, event-driven plots present a pre-set trajectory that no one can deviate; events follow one another in a causal chain or happen fortuitously, without any of the characters being able to influence their course. This is the domain of action movies, soap operas, situation comedies and most superhero comics. I’m not saying that one is better than the other. Action movies are good as is Shakespeare – and I happen to watch a lot more kung-fu flicks than tragedies. The key however is to choose the right engine for your plot according to the kind of story you want to tell.

Now why do superhero comics succeed with event-drive plots? Because they got the BANGs, the POWs and the KAPWEENGs (hehe) to entertain us on the ride. Fights, explosions, gadgets, alien invasions – you name it. All things that are mostly lacking in books like Ed Brubaker’s CRIMINAL tales or Warren Ellis’ FELL. These are character-driven plots because it’s the actions and motivations of Leo the coward or detective Richard Fell that lead the story.

Now let’s come back to NO PLACE LIKE HOME after a very long detour. The awkwardness I felt felt was due to the feeling that none of characters had any traction whatsoever on what happened. They were all simply passengers in the story, being taken along without much protestation. Character-driven plots need strong characters that can surprise both the writer and the reader by hijacking the story to unexpected places. Plot-driven plots usually dress up their characters and have them make funny faces while they go through the motions.

And that’s worrying me about NO PLACE LIKE HOME. None of the characters seem strong or defined enough to influence the plot into going into any definite direction. They could be replaced with any other character and the plot would not change one bit. I have no doubt that we’re only just beginning to peel back layers and uncovering a very clever machination. However, complexity without depth is nothing but cold clockwork parts. A beautiful machine that works but fails to move us.

In short: it’s superhero plotting in a world without any colors.

That being said, NO PLACE LIKE HOME is shaping up to be a good story anyway. The premise is quite intriguing, mixing what seems like elements of a dark conspiracy in rural America with L. Frank Baum’s Oz mythos. It’s a twisted cocktail of noir, grit and wonder that can’t help but pull me in.

Welcome once more to another (second in fact) installment of Points of Impact, where I tell you what had the most impact on me in my reading of the weekly harvest. Enough preamble, let’s get to the nitty-gritty!

I loved…

The use of silent panels in Nathan Edmondson’s THE ACTIVITY #3 – Sometimes you have to know when to shut up. With this third issue, Nathan Edmondson demonstrates that he masters that ancient and sadly oft-forgotten art.

After the first page (a splash panel with a single speech balloon), the following spread is completely silent until the fifth panel. However, during these silent panels, a lot is being said. Edmondson takes his time to let the mood set in, pacing his beats carefully until the silence is ready to be broken, when the tension has been deemed high enough to be broken in a dramatic way.

All throughout this issue, moments of silence come punctuate the narrative, as if it were one long conversation where the sentences need periods from time to time. This gives the whole story a kind of rhythm reminiscent of French novels that manage to be impervious to being put down despite the evident lack of action. The comparison isn’t that far off considering that THE ACTIVITY #3 is nothing short of a long argument between the team members after a failed mission. Sure, we get some glimpses of the mission in very brief flashbacks, but the meat of it is just the operatives arguing on a helicopter.

Well no. Because it ISN’T only that, because there are these moments of eloquent silence, Nathan Edmondson manages to tell a lot more than if he had crammed every panel with speech balloons.

I liked…

The space given to magical moments in Kurtis J. Wiebe’s PETER PANZERFAUST #1 – The same way Nathan Edmondson lets silence speak in THE ACTIVITY, Kurtis J. Wiebe lets special moments take some expansion in the first issue of his WWII-era Peter Pan.

Anytime the character of Peter does anything that approaches the magic performed by his namesake, it’s like time slows down around him. All of a sudden, the panel count grinds down to splash pages and we’re left taking in the epicness that seems to permeate the very air around Peter. For example, his introduction marks the first use of a splash page. In the same way, the panel count goes down when he later on dodges German fire and then jumps a 20-foot gap between two ruined buildings.

The empty space left in the splash page for that last occurrence is very evocative in itself; it occupies roughly half the page. That’s precious real estate for a story told in 22 pages – but it works.

And in that moment, you really can believe that Peter does fly.

I was disappointed by…

The confusing plot of Brian Azarello’s WONDER WOMAN #6 – I was almost hesitant to admit I understood next to nothing about the plot of this comic. I read it once, cover to cover, and then I had a moment of abject terror when my mind refused to accept that it didn’t understand something on the first try. “I’m a smart guy, dammit! Come on, this is a comic book! I had to study Kant in college and that went down well!” So I settled down for a second more attentive reading, hoping that I had read it too fast, being too eager to type up these fine precious thoughts you’re reading right now.

It didn’t work. I was still confused. “OK, I must be tired. It’s been a long day after all.” I got up, took a long shower and fixed myself a drink. Then I sat down with it again.

Still nothing.

I mean, I have a pretty general idea of what happened: I could recite by heart by now the exact sequence of events from the first page to the last. However, by my troth, I couldn’t tell you why what anybody did led to any of the events depicted. The links between cause and effect is so tenuous as to be almost nonexistent. Even worse: when it’s all said and done, I still don’t know what bearing the events in the comic had on the ending, how the status quo was changed and how that change was achieved.

In order words, the narrative went from point A to point B by passing though a wormhole.

Special mention: Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo manage to do a 13-panel page in BATMAN #6 and it’s still less confusing that the entire 20 pages of WONDER WOMAN.

I just put this up on Twitter, well a crappy photo version of the printout I have on my wall. I thought I’d do a clean JPEG version if anyone wants their own printout.

Basically it’s just a visual reminder of how pages are laid out in a classic comic book format. That way, when you’re writing, you can just look it up and see if you’re making classic rookie mistakes like setting a double-page splash on both sides of the same physical page or placing your BIG REVEAL moment on the page opposite your oh-so-suspenseful cliffhanger.

Oh course, it doesn’t take into account the placement of ads in the middle of the book. That’s what you get for playing in the big leagues, hot-shot!

Times are hard, work is hell and money doesn’t come easy. When it comes to choosing which comics make the cut week after week, I have to be very sure that my limited resources are well spent. After all, I’m going to need that money soon enough to hire a creative team!

That’s why maintaining a healthy and cost-efficient pull list sometimes seem like more work than actually writing my own comics. Like any other expense in my budget, I have to balance my WANTS and my NEEDS. I know it might sound ridiculous to use the word NEEDS when talking about the purchasing of entertainment items, but I have my reasons.

Essentially, since I hope one day to make a career out of comics, I feel like I need to consider my comic collection like a reference library. Hence, I pick my books according to what I feel I can learn from them. Oh sure, I have my guilty pleasure (I’m looking at you, SUICIDE SQUAD!) and other quirky preferences and allergies, but I treat my comic reading largely as a learning experience. If a title offers me little substance for my buck, off the list it goes.

Up to now, this has been an intuitive process. Once I’ve tried a book, I know whether or not I’ll keep on buying it in the future. However, I thought it would make for an interesting little experiment to try and actually quantify my evaluation of titles. Doing this might help me understand what I like in a comic – and how I would like the comics I write to be. It might also open up new possibilities for trying out comics which I never dreamed of sampling, because I never realized before how close to my tastes they really are. Feel free to sound off in the comments if you think of any!

Now how does this work? As soon as the first previews hit the Web, prospective titles accumulate or lose points based on the criteria listed below. If the final score is positive (that is more than zero), that title will be bought and considered for becoming part of my pull list.

Good writer: +5 – An established writer reputed to consistently put out good work: Brian Wood, Gail Simone, Mike Mignola, Grant Morrison, and so on

Hot newcomer writer: +10 – A writer new to the business but who surprised with his first few offerings: Brandon Seifert (WITCH DOCTOR), Nathan Edmondson (WHO IS JAKE ELIS?, THE ACTIVITY), Kurtis J. Wiebe (GREEN WAKE) and so on

Rob Liefeld as artist: -20 – Apparently one of the sweetest guys in the business, but… well… it’s a matter of taste really. Sorry, Rob!

Any kind of “event”: -10

Gratuitous excessive gore: -10

Tries to be CROSSED: -15

Is CROSSED: -20 – Sorry, Garth, I love ya but I just can’t stomach that comic. I promise I’ll buy THE BOYS in trades some day!

Gratuitous excessive swearing: -5

Gratuitous excessive cheesecake: -5

Simultaneous gratuitous cheesecake and gore: -20

Sounds like Frank Miller’s THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS: -10

Sounds like Frank Miller’s THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS but IS by Frank Miller: -5 – One exception to this rule: it IS Frank Miller’s THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS.

However, even if a title passes muster, it might still get cut if it proves itself unable to entertain after a thorough reading. That’s when the post-reading criteria come into play:

Witty dialogue: +5

Clever plot: +5

Too wordy: -5

Not wordy enough: -10

SyFy Channel-worthy dialogue: -10

Confusing plot: -5

Predictable plot: -10

Issue in which nothing really happens AKA boring plot: -10 – The writing might be good, but never make me buy a comic in which the plot has simply no forward momentum. If I want to spend some time with people standing around being witty, I’ll go on Twitter.

Cheap death or gimmick: -10 – “Don’t miss this milestone issue in which Spidey changes his costume!”

Reversing of cheap death or gimmick: -20 – “Watch out, world! The old Spidey is back!”

Now let’s try to apply these to some of the books on my pull list and see if our methodology holds:

Favorite character: +5 (Batwoman)
Artist in my top 3: +10 (J.H. Williams III)
Artist in the writer’s seat: -5
Witty dialogue: +5
Clever plot: +5Final score: 20 – Another good score. If would have scored even higher if this was the Detective Comics era when Greg Rucka was writing Batwoman (30 in fact).

BATWOMAN (since issue #6)

Favorite character: +5 (Batwoman)
Artist in the writer’s seat: -5
Witty dialogue: +5
Confusing plot: -5Final score: 0 – Pull yourself together, guys! This title has suffered a big blow when J.H. Williams III gave Amy Reeder the drawing duties, not so much because Reeder isn’t doing a good job (she’s doing a great job!), but because they slacked off in the writing department. I’m rooting for you, Amy!

THE ACTIVITY

Hot newcomer writer: +10 (Nathan Edmondson)
Original premise: +5 (the plot follows the actions of a covert ops clean-up crew)
Creator-owned title: +5
Not a super hero book: +5
Witty dialogue: +5
Clever plot: +5Final score: 35 – A very good score for a very good book from a promising newcomer on the scene.

GREEN WAKE

Hot newcomer writer: +10 (Kurtis J. Wiebe)
Original premise: +5 (If I go into this we’ll never be done with this post – just… just trust me, OK?)
Creator-owned title: +5
Not a super hero book: +5
Witty dialogue: +5
Clever plot: +5Final score: 35 – Same score as THE ACTIVITY and it’s not surprising since it’s the exaxct same reasons that make me buy this title.

THE PUNISHER

Writer in my top 5: +15 (Greg Rucka)
Decades-old Marvel property: -15
Witty dialogue: +5
Clever plot: +5Final score: 10 – Despite a very big flaw against it (it’s one of Marvel’s cash cows), THE PUNISHER is saved by the presence of a very strong writer who knows his craft. Take Rucka out of the equation however and we’re down in the negative.

That adds up pretty well. From a purely quantitative viewpoint, our methodology justifies the purchase of these titles. It even warns us about the possibility of dropping a book (BATWOMAN).

Speaking of which, does it work the other way around too? Does it justify why I’ve already dropped some titles? Let’s see…

ACTION COMICS

Good writer: +5 (Grant Morrison)
Decades-old DC property: -10
Confusing plot: -5Final score: -10 – I’ll admit that, for me, this title was coasting on the Grant Morrison brand name even before he introduced the robots and all that. I did like Batman Incorporated however, but to be completely honest, that plot was even more confusing! Oh Batman! Why do you always make things so much better?

Original premise: +5
Literary adaptation: +5
Creator-owned title: +5
Not a super hero book: +5
Too wordy: -5
Confusing plot: -5
Issue in which nothing really hapens: -10Final score: 0 – This book had a premise tailor-made to please (Professor Moriarty comes out of retirement to solve mysteries!) but as issues went by, I had to come to the sad realization that the execution wasn’t up to the expectations prompted by the idea. It was a close cut, but I sadly had to let it go.

NEONOMICON

Good writer: +5 (Alan Moore)
Literary adaptation: +5
Creator-owned title: +5
Not a super hero book: +5
Simultaneous gratuitous cheesecake and gore: -20
Too wordy: -5Final score: -5 – The pool scene. That would have been a very good moment to IMPLY something had happened. Oh God, the pool scene…

So it works for those too! Am I cocky enough to try and predict the future? There is after all a new title coming out this week that I’ll be picking up…

PETER PANZERFAUST

Hot newcomer writer: +10 (Kurtis J. Wiebe)
Original premise: +5
Literary adaptation: +5
Creator-owned title: +5
Not a super hero book: +5Final score: 30 – And it’s not even out yet! If we factor in some posible post-reading criteria, Mr. Wiebe could very well have another winner in my book!

Well that was fun and all, but what about you? Do you have any criteria on which you base your comic purchases? How many points would they be worth if you were to go through with the same neurotic exercise I just did?

Long time no write, but it’s no use dwelling upon that sad fact. Life happens and we get carried off to unknown parts sometimes.

I thought I’d kick off the renaissance by introducing a new regular (I hope!) feature spotlighting what are the points that had the most impact on me script-wise in my weekly comic haul. I thought I’d proceed as such: name one thing that really surprised me by how good it was (I loved…), one thing that made me smile (I liked…), and one thing that frustrated me because I know the guy or gal is better than that (I was disappointed by…). And no, you’ll never see me do any I hated… because what would be the point in throwing a tantrum?

Ready for the first one? Let’s go!

I loved…

The tone of Brian Wood’s CONAN THE BARBARIAN #1 – When I first heard that Brian Wood was going to pen the script for the new Conan series at Dark Horse, I knew it was the right moment to get into the notorious barbarian’s adventures. Contrary to your probable expectations, I knew of Wood’s writing through THE NEW YORK FOUR and its sequel THE NEW YORK FIVE, not through to thematically closer NORTHLANDERS. I had already been charmed by the way he can craft engaging and natural-sounding dialogue. This comic is… quite the opposite, to say the least. It is however a perfect fit for conferring that pulpy epic feel that the narrative needs. Let’s face it: we’re talking about grim fantasy fare here, not Blackberry-obsessed college girls. If you can’t go for natural contemporary sensibility, you better go all-out with the the epicness – which is delivered in spades.

Here, taste this sample:

Page 1 (5 panels)

Panel 1

CAPTION: Messantia, capital of Argus.

CAPTION: Like a gilded pearl glittering against the cobalt waters of the Western ocean.

Panel 2

CAPTION: A city of aristocracy, of the rule of law and the justice system.

CAPTION: A city where great merchant villas adorning terraces high in the hills look down over…

Panel 3

CAPTION: …grimy hovels bordering the quays, crime-infested bazaars where the abstract corruption of the upper classes translates down to a knife lodged in the ribs of a man dying in a dark alley.

Panel 4

NO COPY

Panel 5

CAPTION: Conan the Cimmerian does no notice this divide.

Page 2-3 (splash spread)

CAPTION: This barbarian from the north is busy riding for his life.

The most interesting thing about this is that Brian Wood is in fact adapting the original novelette QUEEN OF THE BLACK COAST by Robert E. Howard, breaking down the prose into more digestible captions and dialogue for the comic while preserving the feel and tone of the original. The result is a magnificient homage to pulp literature instead of yet another watered-down modern adaptation. I strongly urge you to have a look at the writer’s commentary track on CBR for more details.

Here, have another sample straight from the book:

Also bonus points for Becky Cloonan’s character designs for Conan. Finally someone lets go of the Frazetta imagery and Schwarzenegger portayal to show a more plausible character. “Barbarian” was his origin, not his job. This isn’t Dungeons & Dragons!

I liked…

The witty dialogue in Adam Glass’ SUICIDE SQUAD #6 – You’ll have to forgive me for quoting a Monty Python sketch but: “There is only one thing in the world worse than being witty, and that is not being witty.” If there’s one thing that the comics world doesn’t lack, it’s witty people. Unfortunately, not all of of these people get to write dialogue. I wince at times when I read some of what passes for clever repartee, lines that would find a better fit in a 90s made-for-TV action movie than in a medium that should pride itself in part for its writing. Well to be completely honest, I don’t wince that much, I do groan more than I’d like, but most of the time I just go with the obligatory and unenthusiastic “heh”.

Such was not the case for this month’s SUICIDE SQUAD offering. This time, I replaced the “heh” with a heartfelt “Ha!”

After killing a roomful of Harley Quinn male impersonators (don’t ask)SAVANT: Man, this is going to make for some *weird* chalk outlines.

Interrogating siamese twins (again don’t ask)DEADSHOT: So… which one of you is the smart half?

Granted, the characterization of the Joker has something that felt slightly off to me but still, you can’t fault a comic when it has this line in it:

KING SHARK: Kill more clowns.

I was disappointed by…

The disjointed narrative in J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman’s BATWOMAN #6 – Oh how the mighty have slightly slipped half a point down my imaginary ladder of excellence. It’s not much of a drop, but when you start at such a lofty position as the first five issues of BATWOMAN occupied, it can’t help but feel like a huge disappointment, even though the comic is still very, very good.

The problem? This comic is literally ALL OVER the place. Every scene switch is a new jump in time as well as change in character POV.

Now if the POVs had been limited to one or two characters of if the jumps always moved forward in time, it wouldn’t have been so disturbing. Not to mention that DC’s habit of slipping in ad pages at every two pages is not helping keeping up with the screwed up timetable at all. As it is, it’s a confusing narrative that forces you to manage an unwieldy timeline thus taking you completely out of the story. Reading comics should be an experience that engages your reader naturally, not something that requires more concentration than channel surfing. I’m not saying it should be mindless entertainment, but “what the hell is happenin right now” shouldn’t be one of the enlightening questions to occupy my mind as I’m reading.

And seriously, guys, you did this just as Amy Reeder was starting on her turn drawing the comic. Not cool at all.

That’s all for now! Come back next week for some new Points of Impact!